Suggestions for Toddler Backpack W/ Harness

Updated on
May 28, 2010

T.K.
asks from
Seattle, WA
on May 22, 2010

18
answers

Hello Mamas! I have a 20 month old son who loves to run around everywhere. I tend to keep him in the grocery cart or stroller when we run errands, but I would like to let him out/down at times, especially when it's just a quick trip in and out. He is great at holding hands when we walk around outside in our neighborhood. He does fairly well in stores as long as we are moving, but if we have to stop for anything, i.e. stand in thee check-out line, etc. he wants to go see and touch everything. My husband and I would like to get him a backpack harness, both for his safety and our piece of mind. I want him to be able to give into his curiosity at times and I don't want to be over-protective, but it only takes seconds for someone to grab him or for him to get hurt. I only want to use the backpack harness when we are in crowded stores or out and about in crowded places. I plan on letting him roam free (w/in reason of course) when the situation allows.
I would love some thoughts/opinions and suggestions on this? I have looked briefly online for a backpack harness and found a couple that seems like good choices, but I would love to know what some of you have used yourselves, etc.
I do have some people in our lives that do not agree w/ us using a harness. I do understand their concerns, however I was harnessed myself as a child and I turned out just fine... as well as I am thankful to my parents for keeping me safe. :)
Thank you all in advance for you advice! I hope everyone has a great weekend!

I just wanted to add that I also have a newborn daughter and unfortuately my hands are more than full from time to time. I would love to be able to devote all of my attention to my son, but that is just not possible a lot of the time while we are out and about. I only plan on using the harness when needed for situations that are crowed and I have our daughter w/ us as well. Thanks!

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M.M.

answers from
Los Angeles
on
May 22, 2010

I told myself I would never be one of those parents who put their child on a leash but when my 2 year suddenly hated sitting in the stroller and we were making a trip to disneyland I folded and bough one and I do not regret it one bit!! We have eddie bauer monkey backpack harness I bought at target, it's cute it looks just like a little monkey backpack but has a leash! We LOVE it!!! I travel with him a lot so we use it at the airport instead of a stroller, we use it at the zoo and disneyland as we go very frequently! Here is the link

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T.P.

answers from
Portland
on
May 23, 2010

We have the Monkey harness from Target ( in the baby section ) and it has worked great. My daughter was about the same age when we started using it. I was able to utilize the harness as a teaching tool as well. I gave her a choice, if she stayed with the cart (when shopping) or with us if we were out somewhere and did not run off I would let her hold the "tail" (leash) herself. But, if she did run off I would hold the "tail". It really helped her understand the concept of staying with us, as well as helping her make good choices (and learn the concequences of her choices). By the time she was a little over 2 yrs we stopped having to use it.

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L.S.

answers from
Seattle
on
May 23, 2010

I don't think that there are any problems with using a harness. We got the monkey backpack that is sold at Walmart. My son loved it when he was two. It was his monkey. What I would do sometimes is put it on him and tuck the leash into the pocket. I would let him start out on his own but did tell him that if he wandered I would have to hold the monkey's tail. This gives him the chance to have freedom until he is not using it wisely anymore. Don't worry about what other people may think. After all they are just trying to learn about the world around them and it is our job to keep them safe while they are doing that.

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S.B.

answers from
Redding
on
May 22, 2010

Oh, how I hated seeing a child on a harness.
Until I had one.
My daughter was walking at 7 months and she didn't always like being in a stroller. She did great in grocery carts because we were in and out and she was up in the cart enough to be able to see me and what was going on.
She grew tired of the stroller pretty quickly if we were at the mall or somewhere like that.
I found wrist harnesses. One end attached to me and one to her. We called it our "bracelets". It had strong velcro and as little as she was, it had strong velcro and didn't slip off her wrist or come undone. I told her she had to wear it so Mommy wouldn't get lost. She believed that was the reason so she happily wore it. She never yanked or pulled. I would imagine that something attached to their back would still give them some yank room as far as exerting their strength and trying to pull like a little strong man trying to pull a locomotive. I never tried one of those kind so I don't know, but the wrist thing was really great in our case.
I used nothing with my son. He was so good about staying by me.
The back packs sound cute. I've never seen one.
I have seen the Mommy Dearest versions that the kids wear at all times and make you wonder if the kid is even strapped into their bed at night.
I think kids need to learn how to stand still and by their parents in line at the grocery store or what have you, I'm not sure a leash accomplishes that. It basically says you can touch what you want as long as you don't get farther than the leash will let you go, but in very crowded situations like at a farmer's market or a fair, especially if you have a child prone to wanting to run off, one of those little back pack things might be the hot set up.

I hope you find one that works for you.

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B.O.

answers from
Portland
on
May 24, 2010

I went through the sit-downs and running around everywhere with my daughter at that age too. I even almost bought a harness, was in line at the store getting ready to pay for it. Then I thought, I can get through this without a this leash, and I put it back on the shelf. I worked through it with her. I took extra time to teach her boundaries of when/where she could run, and when she needed to hold my hand. I was patient and firm, and it worked. I am so glad I did. She is the most awesome kid to take anywhere now that she is 4. And she still likes to hold my hand, and she is aware of where I am at instead of being easily distracted which is what leads to wandering. We discover things together while walking.(Rather than separately, which is what a leash encourages.) I also think that it would be easier to grab a child from a half attentive leash parent than from a fully attentive hand holding one.
I am also a preschool teacher, and take my toddler class out for long walks everyday without leashes. Each teacher in my class gets 2-3 children to hold hands with or monitor. It can be done:)

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M.M.

answers from
Providence
on
May 23, 2010

I've seen those backpack harnesses with the stuffed animals on them in the One Step Ahead catalog. www.onestepahead.com

I have never used one but am thinking about maybe getting one for my toddler daughter.

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H.H.

answers from
Killeen
on
May 22, 2010

My son had the monkey harness, but it made him really sweaty. We got another online with just a simple strap. We used it at the zoo which was great becasue it is no fun to be in a stroller at the zoo and they could be gone in a second.

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P.R.

answers from
New York
on
May 22, 2010

I love the Eddie Bauer Harness Buddy Monkey from Target too. Although it's a little bulky, it looks just like Curious George holding on to your toddler (which adults and kids love) and has two snap closures that they can't undo easily. Tell your child the monkey helps mommy from getting lost and show them how they can "lead the way" while you hold on to the tail. Keep one in the car so you won't forget it when running errands and another in your suitcase for travel - affordable and absolutely indispensible.

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R.R.

answers from
Los Angeles
on
May 23, 2010

Ditto to what HHinTX said. In addition to making him sweaty, it also did not seem to tighten down like I wanted it to, and it would sag above his head. Instead we got a plain black Munchkin brand one from Walmart, and it has worked great. He thinks it's fun to wear it, too, even though it doesn't have a monkey on it.

Ignore anyone who says you shouldn't use a harness! I liked what one mom said on another message board "Anyone who [doesn't think you should use a harness] has obviously never stood on a busy Subway platform with a rambunctious two year old." Some kids need to be restrained or they would have no freedom at all because you would have to have them on your hip, or they would be goners. Ours is one of them! The leash is a solution that makes us both happy!

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A.W.

answers from
Seattle
on
May 23, 2010

I was one of those people who before kids said "no way, never, absolutely not." And then I had my daughter. :-)
We bought the monkey back pack from Target for like $10.00 and we all loved it.
I had to do it. My daughter was an explorer and still is. We used it for starting around 18months for about 1 year. I think it really allowed her some freedom and allowed me to feel like I wasn't constantly saying stop, no, come back, hold my hand, etc. Now at three and although we have had some "exploration" incidents where she wanders a littler further than what I would like, for the most part she stays nice and close holding hands, or my shirt and/or within sight.
So best short term investment I ever bought. And really, we only needed it for a short time. We have now past it on to another friend, who before kids said the same thing as me...LOL

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M.H.

answers from
Chicago
on
May 22, 2010

We have Mickey and the puppy. we love them. They are about $10 I think. Or if you were looking for one that you wear, and they ride in we have the Kelty one ( I think that was the brand). My son loves being in it.. He can see everything.

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W.C.

answers from
Seattle
on
May 23, 2010

I used a harness with a "leash" when my son was 24 months and I had a newborn. My hands were more than full, even when I had the stroller, and my son was a lollygagger. He just loved to move at his own pace and I didn't want to constantly be pulling at his arm.

I thought it was wonderful. He could look at all kind of things and his little arm was never pulled at or pulled along. I knew where he was and he was always safe. Great invention. Go for it on shopping trips in crowded places when you need to get in and out or your hands will be full.

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S.T.

answers from
Portland
on
May 28, 2010

I had one for my now 3 year old. He was a little younger when we used it. My husband and I loved it and it let him explore freely ( well kinda ). So I would recommend it. That being said you should prepare yourself for comments others make. Some people don't like to see kids on these things because they think we are treating them like a dog. When all we are doing is protecting them.. So good luck!!

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H.D.

answers from
Portland
on
May 23, 2010

I'm not fond of harnesses, but when I was teaching at a nonprofit with a group of 8 toddlers, we used the wrist-to-wrist ones. They were necessary for outings. Instead of putting them on their wrists, though, I would often slide them up to their upper arms for better control of their bodies. Then you can tie the other side to a belt-loop. And they still need some routine hand-holding, like when you are at the bus stop or train platform or crossing streets. Harnesses can be helpful, but any product can fail, so please consider still holding hands or holding your child when you come to a place that might be dangerous. Kids don't have the self-restraint to exercise caution (which is why we get harnesses, right?) and I have heard of some products coming off, coming apart or failing in other ways.

By the way, we have always used our stroller as the choice for "you may walk on the sidewalk or you can ride in the stroller" and haven't had too many bad moments. I think learning to stay close is an important skill for kids to have, but I know that each child is different. I'm just saying this worked better for us. This gives him the chance to practice staying in a designated space, within control of our voices and to know that when he runs off, he loses that option. By far the most direct way of teaching him to listen to directions and we explain to him that "I see you are not ready to stay close/safe, so I need you to ride now". Either in our out of the stroller, he must be safe.

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M.R.

answers from
Rochester
on
May 22, 2010

We used ours this afternoon! :) My husband was fishing with a friend and our 3 1/2 year old, so I went hiking with our 21 month old. We were on trails but the trail goes up with a drop-off to the creek. The "backpack" we have is from Target--I can't remember the brand but it is a beige puppy that clips in two places across the chest. The "leash" is removable. I left it looped in my belt loop most of our hike and just clipped it on when we hit the high ledge area so he could be free without plummetting 40 feet into moving water (which would really stink).

I like that the "leash" part is removable because I can stow a cup of water in the backpack (great to keep your kids hydrated when you're out!), and if I am holding the end of it, I am usually also holding his hand or letting him trot ahead without any danger. We have also used it in crowded areas where kids can get away from you quickly.

My father-in-law reminds us (from 2 1/2 hours away) to use it anytime we're going anywhere with crowds, so I'm glad they think it is a great idea. They know what sociable, uninhibited boys we have. We don't use it on our older boy anymore since he is pretty good now, but we used it last summer hiking in Acadia as well, since again I wanted him to be able to clamber around freely but did not want to have the coast guard fish him out of the Atlantic. Anyway, I LOVE having one, we let the boys use it as a backpack when we're out which cuts down on what we have to carry for short trips, and I know they can't get themselves lost or fall somewhere. The harness is comfortable, adjustable, and safe for them to wear. I also find people are more likely to see me out with it and remark one what a great idea it is--very different from the wrist lines, which I would never use and hate to see. Before you use it with the "leash" (I use that for lack of a better word), use the backpack part a few times so he can get used to it.

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J.N.

answers from
Seattle
on
May 24, 2010

I purchased mine at Target. It looks like a little monkey (which my kids loved) and you hold the tail. We told them it was their backpack and never had one fight to put it on. When it was appropriate, we would let them hold their own tail :)

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E.E.

answers from
Portland
on
May 23, 2010

I think it is wise to have on of these for crowded places someone could snatch your child so quickly or child could run off without thinkinin the one second you are digging keys out of purse, looking other way etc. The ones with unicorns monkeys or puppies from Fred Meyer's or babies r us are 8-15$ and so cute my DD loved it and felt special not leashed. Also wonderful bonus I found is they can protect a child from a nasty fall. We were walking on old uneven sidewalk when my DD saw something exciting started to go after it tripped on sidewalk and was headed fora nasty faceplant and leash and I stopped the fall Andrew her face from hitting cement by inches!

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J.B.

answers from
Atlanta
on
May 22, 2010

Target has a lot of cute Eddie Bauer ones. I never used one, although at times I wanted to, but I DID get my parents one! They kept my oldest on some weekends or days when he was a toddler, and he's extremely active and curious. When they would take him somewhere like the Renaissance Festival or other crowded public places, they wanted to use it and I was glad. Both are older and arthritic, and I thought it would be much too easy for him to get away. I have real issues with people who flip out over parents using harnesses. They may be parents themselves, but they may not have a child like some of our children! And if they're not parents -well then, they can shut it!